Improvements are set to begin to Box Hill and Johnsonville stations on the Johnsonville Line. Box Hill station will close temporarily on 3 May for two to three months while the platform is extended to the south and re-surfaced.
Box Hill is the latest in a series of stations around the Wellington region that are being upgraded as part of the wider rail improvement programme. Work on Johnsonville Station is also expected to start in late April, although the station will remain open.
Wellington Region Rail Programme Director David Gordon said these two were the last of the Johnsonville Line stations to get the upgrade treatment, following work over the past year on other stations on the line.
“Passengers have appreciated the improved platforms elsewhere along the line so while the construction work is disruptive, I hope people can be patient with us and keep the end goal in sight,” David Gordon said.
“Unfortunately construction constraints mean we simply can’t keep Box Hill station open while we’re working on the platform.”
Passengers who normally use Box Hill will need to use adjacent Khandallah or Simla Crescent stations. More information is available at www.tranzmetro.co.nz or by calling Metlink on 0800 801 700.
Work will start at Johnsonville Station on 26 April, and it will remain open while a short extension is added to its southern end and the entire platform resurfaced.
The Wellington Region Rail Programme is a joint initiative between KiwiRail and Greater Wellington Regional Council to improve passenger rail services.
The $550 million programme includes:
- A fleet of new electric trains – the Matangi trains
- Extension of electrification and double tracked lines to take commuter services to Waikanae;
- Installation of power supply equipment and railway signalling;
- Adding another line into Wellington Railway Station to reduce delays;
- Making the Johnsonville Line tunnels larger; and
- Improving a number of platform and station facilities.